ARRL General Bulletin ARLB057 (1997)

SB QST @ ARL $ARLB057
ARLB057 Doug DeMaw, W1FB, SK
ZCZC AG57
QST de W1AW
ARRL Bulletin 57 ARLB057
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT September 29, 1997
To all radio amateurs
SB QST ARL ARLB057
ARLB057 Doug DeMaw, W1FB, SK
Acclaimed ham radio icon Milton F. ''Doug'' DeMaw, W1FB, died
September 28. He was 71. One of the most widely published technical
writers in Amateur Radio, DeMaw was diagnosed with leukemia earlier
this year and had been in failing health in recent weeks.
DeMaw was first licensed in 1950 as W8HHS. An electrical engineer,
he was a member of the ARRL Headquarters staff for 18 years--from
1965 to 1983--and served as Technical Department Manager and Senior
Technical Editor from 1970 to 1983. During his tenure at HQ, DeMaw
served as editor of The ARRL Handbook. In 1970, he engineered the
shift in emphasis toward solid-state design in QST and the Handbook.
He has hundreds of articles in QST and other publications to his
credit. DeMaw also was founder and publisher of VHFer Magazine. (His
wife, Jean, W1CKK, also worked on the Headquarters staff.) DeMaw was
a life member of the ARRL and a senior member of the IEEE.
After retiring to the family farm in Luther, Michigan, he was
elected chairman of the Lake County Board of Commissioners and
continued to write books and articles. He also tried his hand in the
Amateur Radio business as proprietor of Oak Hills Research. Among
his other books, DeMaw wrote W1FB's Design Notebook, W1FB's QRP
Notebook, W1FB's Antenna Notebook, and The ARRL Electronics Data
Book, which remain popular. In recent years, DeMaw also penned a
regular column for CQ magazine.
A former ARRL colleague, Membership Services Manager Chuck
Hutchinson, K8CH, counted DeMaw among his friends. ''Doug loved to
experiment with circuits and antennas. He also loved to encourage
others to try their hand at building,'' he recalled. Hutchinson said
DeMaw not only wrote prolifically about ham radio but also about
gardening, another of his avocations. ''He was an avid gardener and
cook,'' he said. DeMaw also was an outdoorsman and hunter. ''He
loved to hunt with bow and rifle--both modern and muzzle loader. He
was very good at throwing a knife or hatchet,'' Hutchinson said.
Paul Pagel, N1FB, also was one DeMaw's colleagues during his days at
ARRL HQ. ''Amateur Radio benefited greatly from his work,'' Pagel
said. ''He was a multifaceted man. I doubt there was anything he
couldn't do if he set his mind to it.'' Jerry Hall, K1TD, who also
worked with DeMaw during his years at HQ, called DeMaw a writer of
''uncanny'' ability. ''Doug could write it once, and it was done,''
he recalled.
Survivors include DeMaw's wife, Jean, and a son, David, N8HLE, a
technical writer who lives in Connecticut.
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